A Note from David in Phoenix, Maryland....

Hi Dennis,  I got the rocker box today!   Everything arrived safely and the scope fit like a glove.   I haven’t had chance to take it outside yet but took few pictures inside.  Thank you so much!

David...

Dan's 17.5" F4.5 Telescope Completed . . .

A full Sky Commander system is installed, configured
and tested.

All of my telescopes include a custom-fitted
mirror cover to keep the optics clean and safe.

The heaviest components of this beauty is
the primary mirror itself. Features include
an Observatory Grade Destiny spider, 9-point
flotation mirror cell, Sky commander and 
Moonlite 2-speed focuser.

 

Jim and his 13.1" Truss Kit...

Jim's OTA is looking just right. Nice job
assembling the kit. That's a Moonlite 2-speed
focuser and Destiny 3-vane spider on the top ring.

Rocker box, mirror box and top ring.

This is gonna be a super telescope!!

 

A Rocker Box for a Takahashi MT-160...

A "dob" mount for David's Takahashi MT-160
Newtonian reflector. It stands a scant 20" high
from the base to the center of the altitude 
bearings. David lives in Phoenix, Maryland.

Those are Parallax tube rings. Nice n' heavy duty.

 

A "First Light" from Al in Appleton, Wisconsin . . .

 Hi Dennis:

Well, you wouldn't think that it would take almost eight months to have first light with the amazing 16" dob you built for me, but what with several plans foiled by weather and the pandemic, it did.  My friend Steve and I drove it 1400 miles and finally set it up in Durango, Colorado two weeks ago under stunningly dark skies at 7,500 feet and had a wonderful, inspiring two nights of viewing.  First object was Sirius, to focus in and verify collimation, and then the little open cluster M41 just below it when the sky was still blue... and it was quite wonderful! 

And it only got better from there.  What I see through the eyepiece now is what I always wanted to see: globulars resolved to the core, open clusters rich with bright and faint stars, the bright wings of M42 as well as the core nebulosity, faint galaxies that had previously been too dim to see, and on and on.

So thank you!  Thank you for creating such a fine framework for the f3.9 mirror I got from Orion Optics in the UK.  The scope was easy to put together, impressively steady yet easy to move, and with the cables, holds collimation in all positions.  I have yet to hook up the Sky Commander because we ran out of clear nights before I could do so, but that's next.

Thanks again, Al.

A Completed 10" Kit and Near Completed 17.5" Telescope...

Aaron's 10" strut kit with "Easy Transport" completed.
Aaron's spider, mirror cell and focuser pre-mounted for him.

Dan's mirror box, altitude bearings and 
rocker box are pretty close to completed.

Lookin' great!!

 

Larry and his 13.1" F4.5 Strut Kit ...

It's always a pleasure meeting my customers. Here's 
Larry, from N. Salt Lake Utah, picking up his 13.1"
F4.5 strut telescope kit.

Have fun assembling the kit, Larry. It'll be an 
enjoyable experience. The primary was tested by,
and evaluated by Swayze Optical.